Farm-gate



E. B. HOUCK.

FARM GATE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 18; 1920- 1 ,386, 1 l 3 Patented Aug. 2, 19215 2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

lioenfo r: Ezra 17.12 ouch,

E. B. HOUCK.

FARM GATE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE b8, 1-92 0.

1,386,:[ 1 3, Patented Aug. 2, 1921.

EETS-SHEET 2.

QhebWS BMM UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EZRA B. HOUCK, OF PEORIA, ILLINOIS.

FARM-GATE.

Application filed June 18,

T 0 all whom it may concern.

Be itknown that I, EZRA B. HOUCK, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Peoria, in the county of Peoria and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Farm-Gates, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to gates of that type which may be opened and closed from distant points and has for its object the provision of simple and efficient means whereby aperson approaching the gate upon horseback or in a vehicle may open the gate without alighting and close it in like manner after passing through the gateway, the actuating impulse being always in the same direction as the travel of the operator.

A gate embodying my invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a view partly in elevation and partly in section, showing the closed position of the gate in full lines, and the open position in dotted lines.

Fig. 2 is a view partly in transverse sec tion and partly in elevation.

Fig. 3 is a plan view.

The gate body 1 may be of any desired construction but will be of metal and is shown in the drawings as consisting of rails 2 and braces 3, secured rigidly to and connecting the rails. The rails are extended pastthe brace bar 3 at the secured end of the gate body, the uppermost rail being provided at its extremity with an opening 4:, for a purpose which will presently appear. To the ends of the rails below the uppermost rail is rigidly secured a bar 5, which depends below the bottom rail and is fixed to a rock shaft 6 which is journaled in standards 7, disposed adjacent the opposite sides of the gate, and extends from the gate in both directions. The outer ends of the shaft 6 are journaled in brackets 8 which may be inclosed casings, and, at the outer sides of said brackets, beveled pinions 9, are secured upon the extremities of the shaft. The pinions 9 are in mesh with similar pinions 10, which are carried by the lower ends of vertically disposed driving shafts 12, the upper ends of which are equipped with laterally disposed handles 13. The lower bearings for the driving shafts are furnished by the brackets 8, while the upper bearin s are provided by columns or frames 14:, as s own and as will be readily Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 2, 1921.

1920. Serial No. 389,836.

ver or handle pointing toward him while the handle at the opposite side of the gate will be pointing away from him.

Upon reference to Fig. 2 it will be noted that the pinions 9 are set so as to face in opposite directions and the handles 13 are, consequently, caused to swing in opposite directions although they move simultaneously.

The operation is thought to be obvious. A person approaching the gate, having arrived at either handle 13, pushes the handle forward, and thereby causes the correspond ing shaft 12 to rotate so that the shaft 6 is turned through the medium of the pinions 10 and 9. As the shaft 6 is the pivot or fulcrum of the gate which is fixed thereto,

- th e gate will obviously be caused to swing up and over in its own vertical plane as will. be readily understood on reference to the dotted lines in Fig. 1. The handle 13 remote from the operator will, of course, swing with the actuated handle but in the opposite direction, that is, toward the operator, who, after passing through the gateway, will push upon the second handle and thereby effect a reverse rocking of the shaft 6, to return the gate to closed position. To clear the gateway it is necessary only to move the gate from a horizontal to a vertical position, and, therefore, the handles need swing only through an arc of 90. Hence the handles may be set at an angle of 45 to the vertical plane of the shaft 6, and may be easily grasped with a natural movement when the gate is to be operated.

In order that the gate may swing easily and smoothly without sudden dropping, I provide a counterbalance 15, which is carried by one end of a cable 16, which has its opposite end secured inthe opening 4, at the upper corner of the gate and its intermediate portion trained under a lower pulley 17 and over an upper pulley 18, which are mounted upon a post 19, erected in aliuement with the gate, at the inner side of the roadway, as will be readily understood. This counterbalance causes the gate to have a smooth even movement and minimizes the I labor of overcoming the gates inertia when it is to be either opened or closed.

To prevent sagging of the gate, I provide a rest 20 for the free end thereof, which rest is disposed between two short posts 21, which prevent lateral swaying of the free end of instantly to the actuating impulse so that the'opera-tor is not required to waste energy in a long hard pull to either open or close the gate.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent isj 1. The combination of a horizontal rock shaft, a gate consisting of raiis and braces secured to and connecting the rails between the ends thereof, a vertical bar secured to and connecting some of the rails at the ends thereof, the lower end of said bar being rigidly secured to said shaft whereby rocking of the shaft will tilt the gate in its own vertical plane, a post disposed in the plane of the gate in s aced relation to the rocxing end thereof, a counterbalance supported on said post, a flexible connection between said counterbalance and the adjacent end of the upper rail, outwardly facing pinions secured to the ends of the rock shaft, vertical shafts adjacent the ends of the rock shaft, pinions tending therefrom over the roadway ant normally directed away from the gate at a right angle to each other, said handles moving simultaneously in opposite directions when the gate is tilted.

2. The combination of a horizontal rock shaft, standards in which said shaft is journaled, a gate consisting of rails and braces secured to and connecting the rails between the ends thereof, a vertical bar secured to and connecting some of the rails at the ends thereof, the lower end of said bar being rigidly secured to send shaft whereby rocking of the shaft will tilt the gate in its own vertical plane between said standards, the upper ends of said standards terminating below the upper rail of the gate, a'post disposed in the plane of the gate in spaced relation to the rocking end thereof, a counterbalance supported on said post, a fiexiole connection between said counterbalance and the adjacent end of the upper rail, outwardly facing pinions secured to the ends of the rock shaft, vertical shaft-s adjacent the ends of the rock shaft, pinions 0n the lower ends of said shafts meshing with the pinions on the rock shaft, and handles at the upper ends of the vertical shafts, extending therefrom over the roadway and normally directed away from the gate at a right angle to each other, said handles moving simultaneously in opposite directions when the gate is tilted.

EZRA B. HGUCK. 

